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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/30034815">I want to see you dance!</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Remlundskan/pseuds/Remlundskan'>Remlundskan</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Penny Dreadful (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>(mentions of) Transphobia, Canon Pansexual Character, Canon Trans Character, Challenge Yourself 2021, Fandoms_Challenge_2021, Fix-It of Sorts, Haunting, I Just Wanted Angelique Back, Immortal Dorian Gray, Modern Setting, Other, Reincarnation</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-03-14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-16 00:34:38</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,478</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/30034815</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Remlundskan/pseuds/Remlundskan</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Week 6; Write a ship with very few fics</p>
<p>Dorian juat wanted a second chance, a chance to tell her 'I'm sorry, to ask for her forgiveness, for a second chance with her.</p>
<p>And then, one day, hundreds of years later, he gets the chance of a lifetime.</p>
<p>Her hairstyle was different, her clothes even more so, but her eyes… that smile… Her face was just the same. Dorian couldn’t move. He could barely breathe. Was this another vision, another apparition meant to finally drive him over the edge into insanity? Was he really seeing her? Was she really here? How? Was that why the world was suddenly so filled with colors?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Angelique/Dorian Gray</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>5</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>Fandoms Challenge 2021</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>I want to see you dance!</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>She haunted the mansion for centuries! With no warning, he would see her, standing in the doorway, smiling at him from across the hall. He had whispered her name the first time. He shouted it after the fourth. After the tenth, he stopped calling for her. She would never stay, would never be there.</p>
<p>Because of him!</p>
<p>He heard her laughing right behind him, minutes before he threw a party at the end of a century. He heard her crying as he danced with the beautiful women, saw her weeping as he caressed their skin.</p>
<p>He fucked them to forget her, went deep inside to cleanse himself, men and women alike, and when they were all gone, and he was alone again, she was still there. Her eyes still following him, accusing him, calling to him, looking at him with such sorrow and despari.</p>
<p>Because of him!</p>
<p>Sometimes, he would wake up in the middle of the night, thunder storm raging outside,  thinking for one mad, glorious second that she would be lying right next to him in bed.</p>
<p>No matter what he did, it all reminded him of her. It was his punishment. He had killed one of the most exquisite creatures on the planet, and he was being punished, year after year, deaced after decade, century after century... Even the sun reminded him of her, the sparkle in her eyes, the confident smile. The rain reminded him of her tears, of her desperation to be accepted into a world that had no place for her. The thunder reminded him of the touch of her skin beneath his fingers, the way they moved together, so perfectly, as if they had been lovers for millennia.</p>
<p>The blackest night reminded him of her hair; oh, how he loved her hair, running his fingers through it as they kissed, drowning in it as they made love, watching her comb it in front of a mirror.</p>
<p>There were times, that he later chose to forget, where he had been staring at his portrait, wondering what could have been… He would scream at the twisted figure, throw a bottle of expensive wine at it, just to watch it flow over him like a river of blood. He would cut himself bleeding, howl and rage and curse the heavens and his own dark soul and he would beg for the blissful darkness of death. He would drink himself into unconsciousness and when he woke up, he would turn his back on his true self and forget it ever happened.</p>
<p>Throughout it all, as the decades came and went, her presence became the one true constant. He could always count on Angelique being there, accusing him with her look, or just looking at him with that confused hurt look in her eyes, the way she had looked at him when he killed her.</p>
<p>Sometimes, he thought he saw her with Lily, saw them standing together, saw them talking about him, his raven-haired princess and his blonde temptress. They were laughing at him, the best of friends, right up until Lily pulled a knife…</p>
<p>There was so much blood! He had cried out that time,  clawing at his face to stop himself from seeing her lifeless body on the floor… And then, he was back in front of the portrait, she was falling to the ground, because it wasn't Lily that had killed her, it was his doing, his poison.</p>
<p>Like everything else she did in life, even her death had been graceful. Flawless.</p>
<p>She had said she could love him, despite everything, and he couldn’t believe that. How could he? No one could possibly love him, the real him, the ugly truth behind the pretty lie.</p>
<p>Sometimes, he prayed to her, begged her to forgive him. Seconds later, he would admonish himself for being so weak. He was anything but weak, he was Dorian Gray! He was immortal, he was a god among men...</p>
<p>And he was sensationally bored.</p>
<p>At the turn of yet another century, her voice suddenly began to fade. And he instantly missed her. His life held no satisfaction, no thrill, everything was so… mundane. Nothing excited him anymore. He had watched the world change, the people with it, and not all chanhes had been for the better. He had been the center of attention 200 years ago, he was adored and worshipped 300 years ago…</p>
<p>Now, he was nothing!</p>
<p>He didn’t even have her anymore, because she was gone. She had left him. And that had actually hurt, more than any gun or stab wound. Because with her gone, so was the last shred of humanity left in him. He was a shadow now, a memory of times gone by.</p>
<p>He held no more parties; the people of this century bored him. They were so extravagant and so over-the-top that it made him sick. He, who once abhorred the thought of normality, now yearned for some peace of mind.</p>
<p>---</p>
<p>And then, one day, with no warning what so ever, life came rushing back to him. He was out walking. The sun was bright and all around him, people were falling in love. They were drinking coffee these days, buckets and buckets of coffee and he longed to get home and shut the blinds and leave the rest of the world to tend to themselves.</p>
<p>That’s when he saw her! And in that moment, the hectic world around him stopped moving and faded into darkness. The only light he saw, the only bright spot in the darkness… was her!</p>
<p>Her hairstyle was different, her clothes even more so, but her eyes… that smile… Her face was just the same. Dorian couldn’t move. He could barely breathe. Was this another vision, another apparition meant to drive him over the edge into insanity? Was he really seeing her? How could this be so? Was that why the world was suddenly so filled with colors?</p>
<p>His feet were moving before he even had the chance to think it through. She was sitting with some friends, and he could see one of them looking up, staring right at him. Dorian didn’t slow down; he was a man on a mission, a starving man at a feast, a man in the desert finding fresh water to drink. Did they think him a mad man? Maybe he was! To them, he might look like someone with malicious intent, but it didn’t bother him. He had never bothered himself with the opinions of others. He only had eyes for one person.</p>
<p>The friend leaned over the table and whispered something to his brightly burning candle, his sensual goddess and tried to get her to leave, but Dorian increased his speed, moving effortlessly through a sea of people. He saw her look over her shoulder and for the briefest of moments, their eyes met. Whatever doubt he might have had was evaporated in that moment. He knew those eyes like he know his own. Two parts of one whole. He saw her frown a bit and his heart stopped; was she recognizing him as well? Was such a thing possible in this day and age?</p>
<p>He reached the table as two of her friends got up from the table.</p>
<p>“Can we help you?”</p>
<p>There was an edge to the man’s voice, a hidden threat that he appreciated. His angel had loyal friends, friends that stood up for her, that cared for her, something she had lacked back in the day, back when she was alone against the world, fighting for her right to be herself… It made him happy, a feeling he had not felt for several centuries.</p>
<p>“You know this guy, Angie?”</p>
<p>Angie?!</p>
<p>His heart came to a full stop. Angie as in angel, as in Angelique… Could the Fates really grant him this one thing? He could not take his eyes off her, his whole body ached to touch her once again, to hear her voice, to watch her dance…</p>
<p>Oh, he wanted to see her dance again, wanted to see the look of wonder as they moved on the dance floor, everyone admiring them, no one daring to speak up against them. It felt like he was shaking, any second now he would fall to his knees, so grateful for this second chance</p>
<p>“Forgive me”, he finally said, his eyes still on her, seeing no one else at that moment, “I mean you no harm!” Words he should have said to her so long ago. Words to live by. Words to die by! He meant her no harm… He meant only to ask forgiveness for his past actions, and beg for a second chance. ”I’m sorry for staring; it’s just that I have never seen an actual angel before, and to be honest, I’m a bit awestruck. I knew angels had an ethereal beauty, but you… are simply breathtaking.”</p>
<p>“Aawww...”</p>
<p>“Man, this guy is smooth!”</p>
<p>He ignored them. They were insignificant! The only thing that mattered was the look in her eyes. He saw it, even if it was gone in-between heartbeats. There was a spark of recognition. She had felt it, too. She might not understand fully just how or why she knew him, but in her heart and soul, she remembered the love they shared. And that was enough for Dorian.</p>
<p>Ever so carefully, he reached out to take her hand, and the very instant their fingers touched, she blinked, as if she felt their connection just from that simple move and then, she looked at him, with something that was but a hint of her beautiful smile.</p>
<p>“Dorian!” she said, as if tasting his name. He had not given it. And yet, she knew it. He did fall to his knees then, in utter relief. Yes, he thought, his whole body singing. Yes, my angel, my Angelique, yes. She held his hand now, staring at it, at him, as if she was remembering a whole lifetime. A sudden panic came upon him as he realized that she might also remember how it ended, that she might remember what he did that night, in front of the portrait. Would she turn from him, the second she did?</p>
<p>“I have searched for you... for so long”, he said, his voice barely more than a whisper now, as if the rest of the world had evaporated around them. “For so long... I needed to tell you I'm sorry. That what I did was wrong, and I hurt you, and I am sorry, but you are here now, alive and beautiful and I am going to spend eternity making it up to you.”</p>
<p>He should feel pathetic, the old him would never act this way, would never speak to anyone this way, but so many years had past, so many centuries; the world had changed and he had changed along with it and she had haunted him for so long... No one could fault him for acting a bit out of character. No one who knew him back then was alive to tell the tale, anyway.</p>
<p>“I take it he's not one of the assholes who came after you, then?” a voice broke through Dorian's moment, sending his heart into a frenzy. Assholes? Came after? Someone came after his beautiful flower? His eyes turned instantly to the young man speaking.</p>
<p>“What are you talking about?”</p>
<p>“It's nothing, really, just...”</p>
<p>“Some assholes were messing around with her this morning, gave her a hard time, calling her names...”</p>
<p>Dorian felt his blood run cold. Names?!</p>
<p>“What names?”</p>
<p>“Dorian...”</p>
<p>“They called her a freak... said she was a... a tranny whore...”</p>
<p>“It's nothing I haven't heard before, it really didn't bother me...”</p>
<p>“... they spat in her face...”</p>
<p>No matter how many centuries went by, some things never changed. People were still despicable. He remembered it happening before, hundreds of years ago, the look of shame on her sweet face, how she had swallowed around the sobs fighting their way through her lips... how he had cleaned her delicate face with his own handkerchief, his eyes never leaving hers, telling her without words that he didn't care, that he would protect her...</p>
<p>She still needed him tro protect her, it seemed. He would make sure she was safe.</p>
<p>“I should have been there”, he muttered, his eyes now back on her, their hands still entwined. “I am so sorry I wasn't...”</p>
<p>Everything inside him wanted to take her away, wanted to take her back to the mansion. They had so much to talk about, so many memories between them, and he would let her dance. There would be music in his home again, and she would smile that sparkling smile that made her face glow and that's when he would take her in his arms and never let go, not ever.<br/>
He had made a huge mstake last time. He would not make that same mistake again.</p>
<p>“Come home with me”, he said, still holding her hand as he stood up. There was a touch of desperation in his voice. He was asking a lot, there was a part of him that knew that. A part of him knew and understood, how confusing it must be for her, remembering a life long gone, her soul trying to reconnect with the one of her past self. He understodd all that, he did, but the only thing he could think of, the only thing that made sense to him in this world, was that everything would be fine, if she came back with him, if she once again brought light back into his life.</p>
<p>He would take care this time, he would never mistrust her, he would never deny her anything.... and if she told him she could love him, despite his horrible truth... then he would accept that. He would believe her! There would be no poisoned wine this time, there would be no beautiful dead flower on the floor, he would do everything right this time. Everything would be different this time...if only she would agree to come back home with him. </p>
<p>In her eyes, he saw Angelique looking back at him, that seductive smile she had given him the first time they met. But he also saw Angie, confused and concerned, her confidence a mere fraction of what Angelique had possessed. If he were to ever get his flower back, he needed to tread lightly. </p>
<p>“I know you have questions... I will tell you everything I know... Just please, come home with me...”</p>
<p>And then, just like that, he knew exactly what to say, and he took her other hand, helping her up.</p>
<p>“Do you like to dance?”</p>
<p>Her eyes lit up, answering the question before her lips could confirm. In a matter of seconds, her whole face was one big smile, and Dorian's heart finally started beating again.</p>
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